Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

College Classroom Humor: Even the Pundits Can Benefit.

2013; Project Innovation Austin; Volume: 133; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

0013-1172

Alan Seidman, Stephen C. Brown,

Communication in Education and Healthcare

Class begins at 7:30 in the morning and the mood is bleak. The students trickle into the barren classroom looking as if they had just wrestled themselves out of bed. Some bring in a caffeinated beverage, which sits ignored on the desks as students are too tired to even drink. Phones lie unused in their hands, as the students even lack the energy to text. The class soon begins and it's not pretty. I present a barrage of technical terminology and real world examples but the mood only gets more somber. Suddenly, without warning, I change gears. I mention that on my way in to work this morning, I passed the local hospital where I saw a ham walk out and pronounce itself cured. The class doesn't quite know how to respond. About a third of the students continue to stare blankly into space. Another third groan and the remaining third appreciate the wordplay and laugh. I've done it. I've broken through the silence barrier that only a 7:30 AM class can bring and have gotten most of the students engaged. The class now takes a turn for the better. The students are a bit more alert and certainly more interested in what is being presented. Much has been written about the positive role that humor can play in the college classroom. It can help the students retain the material (Garner 2006), reduce classroom anxiety (Shibinski & Martin, 2010; Lems 2011) and even result in higher evaluation scores for the teacher (Skinner 2010). The psychological effects of laughter in the classroom have also been studied by Lei, Cohen & Russler (2010); the authors explaining laughter's positive health benefits and how it releases student stress. In the example above, the tipping point for student engagement came through a play on words, or a pun. Whereas puns are often derided for being the lowest form of humor, they are also considered indicative of critical thinking as the brain searches for the dual meaning of certain words (Pollack 2011). They can also provide a much needed burst of levity and set the tone for a relaxed, yet fun, classroom (Lems 2011). In reality, however, not everyone is comfortable making his or her class reminiscent of a few hours at the local comedy club. Many college faculty members often feel as if this is something they simply do not have the capacity to do. This does not have to be the case. No matter what level of internal comedic instincts you might possess, everyone is capable of introducing humorous elements into the classroom. It's been another long class with an hour of material that has already been covered. As hard as I try to promote creative thinking through real world problem solving, there is still dry content that I must present to the students. The mood is anything but lively. The topic today is controlling costs through standardized recipes in food and beverage facilities, and I'm fortunate to have a video that will reset the class tone. I make no formal announcement of what we are going to see, but soon we are all watching Dan Aykroyd impersonate Julia Child as he/she experiences a series of unfortunate but very humorous events in the kitchen. Surprised, but also entertained, the class has a great time watching this. Most have a hard time concealing their laughter. The video worked. The students are now engaged in my class. Without telling a joke, or making a pun, humor has served as the conduit for bringing the class to a whole new level of enjoyment. We live in a great world. As much as we fear losing our privacy by seeing ourselves on Internet media sites, teachers can benefit from technology. The library searches of yesteryear are being replaced with searches on Youtube, Hulu and Google. Type in the word parody and you will find a whimsical take on the situation. And while this type of farcical academia certainly can't replace college-level course content, it can serve as a welcome diversion or breaking point. Sometimes humor can be a reason to come to class. …